Car hire worker jailed for stealing customer refunds

He used the money, taken from Tasmanian car rental agency Apex, to pay for gambling, food, entertainment and other goods and services.

In May 2022, a manager learnt some refunds had not found their way back to customers.

The manager detected $30,000 worth of discrepancies and contacted Nicholls, who said he knew nothing about it.

Nicholls later in May admitted being responsible for some of the transactions, apologised and said they were drug and alcohol-related.

His employment was terminated, and he then made full admissions to police in an interview in November 2022.

In sentencing before the Supreme Court of Tasmania on Tuesday, Chief Justice Alan Blow ordered Nicholls pay back the $134,230.99 he had stolen.

Nicholls, who had earlier pleaded guilty to seven charges of computer-related fraud, was jailed for two years with a non-parole period of 12 months.

Nicholls, previously convicted for stealing, had promised several times to repay the money but was yet to do so.

Justice Blow said Nicholls was regretful, had taken steps to address his gambling and alcohol problems and had good prospects for rehabilitation.

He noted Nicholls had contributed substantially to the community as a football umpire and netball coach.

Media attention from the case resulted in Nicholls losing his job at Telstra earlier this year, Justice Blow said.